To the casual observer, the Interceptor sedan might resemble a newer-model Ford Taurus, but Miller said the similarity is only skin-deep.

“Past the skin of the vehicle itself, there’s no resemblance,” he said. “It’s a purposefully built police car.”

Each Interceptor has a Boron steel roll cage and is able to sustain a 75 mph rear-end collision and take curves at 30 mph, Miller said. The decision to introduce Interceptors into the fleet was made about a year ago after Ford discontinued the Crown Victoria in 2011, Miller said.

Miller said department driving instructors tested Ford, Dodge and Chevrolet patrol vehicles and said the decision to buy Interceptors was “a hands-down deal.”

“Everybody’s just raving about their performance,” Miller said. “They’re very responsive.”

So far, mechanics have equipped six of the new cars for patrolling, Miller said. The Interceptors cost about $30,000 each before mechanics install about $25,000 worth of equipment in the cars, Miller said. The department typically purchases vehicles from dealers locally and in Houston, he said.

“Our mechanics are already up on Ford products, and because we buy and reuse the equipment that goes in these, a lot of the equipment that would fit in the old Crown Vics would fit in the new Interceptors,” Miller said.

Cpl. Jerry Neufeld said the Interceptors have better maneuverability than the Crown Victorias, as well as additional safety features including reverse-mounted back seat belts, which he said come in handy when officers have to buckle someone in.

“With some of these new ones, the seat belts are mounted in reverse … you don’t have to put your face in front of some guy,” Neufeld said.

The only disadvantage to the Interceptors Neufeld mentioned was its slightly smaller leg room. The new sedan offers its front-seat occupants 39.9 inches of leg room, down from 41.6 inches in the outgoing Crown Victoria.

Officers are assigned the new vehicles based on seniority, and Amarillo police do not drive patrol cars off-duty unless they check out a car for an off-duty assignment, Neufeld said.

The department has 65 black-and-white patrol cars in its fleet, and has other vehicles including three black-and-white Ford F-150 pickups, two Ford Expeditions, three Ford Explorers, a Chevy Tahoe, and 13 Harley-Davidson patrol motorcycles, Miller said.

The department also recently purchased three Expedition-derived Ford Interceptor utilities. Two of the Interceptor SUVs will replace the older Expeditions; police will use the third for a K-9 unit, he said. The department also uses unmarked vehicles, Neufeld said.

The Midland Police Department also is updating its vehicle fleet, city spokeswoman Sara Higgins said.

The Midland City Council approved a $516,000 purchase of 22 Tahoes on Jan. 22 to replace a fleet of Crown Victorias, the Midland department’s standard patrol car before the sedans were discontinued, she said. The Midland department has about 120 patrol vehicles in its fleet, Midland General Services Director Robert Patrick said.

Miller said he thinks the Interceptors will prove a useful tool to benefit officers and citizens.

“It’s going to take the public a little bit of time to get used to them because they do look dramatically different than the Crown Vic, but I think the public will be really pleased with them, the fact that our officers will be able to get to calls maybe a little quicker and … safer when we’re responding,” Miller said.